This is the story of my life in Buffalo, N.Y. where I write and draw. I am finishing up the biography of the great American pianist Leonard Pennario, a massive project I began 11 years ago when I had the unbelievable good fortune to get to know him. I also love to sketch.
The blog on this page features my adventures in art and other things. The Music Critic blog -- click the link on the right and down a bit -- has my thoughts on music. Thank you for visiting!

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Out on the town

JoAnn Falletta is the conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and lastnight we went out with our husbands. We went to see Jackie Jocko. That is JoAnn in the picture above with Howard and Jocko.

Jocko gets a kick out of JoAnn. He was reminiscing with her later that night and he said, "The first time I heard they had put a girl up there as conductor ..."

AHAHAHAHAAAAA!

JoAnn was laughing and laughing. That is how cool she is.

I am thinking writing that how funny it is that here I am the, ahem, music critic, and there is JoAnn as the conductor, and I do believe this is the first time in history this has happened, in any city. Normally I am not prone to feminist observations like this but it did enter my mind.

A few weeks ago when I was talking to Leonard Pennario's record producer she admitted that she was pretty much the only woman in a man's business. Then she asked me, "How is it with you?" We were laughing about that.

Well, times are changing.

I had a lot of fun lastnight. Actually I think I had too much fun because JoAnn let me talk about Leonard Pennario way too much. She is probably waking up today telling her husband, there are two words I never want to hear again and they are Leonard and Pennario.

Jocko had tons of fun with JoAnn. Right away he asked her if she was Sicilian. Then he got straight which sign she is and which sign her husband is. "Oh, you are good together!" he said.

He asked JoAnn what time of day she was born. She said early morning, around 1 a.m. Next thing you know he will draw up her chart. If you become Jocko's friend he sometimes draws up your chart. He did that for me once!

Then Jocko filled JoAnn in on all the losers I had gone out with before I married Howard, and how he could tell that none of them was any good.